Personal Injury

Injured in an Auto Accident? Four Tips for Helping Your Case

After an injury suffered in an auto accident, well-intentioned actions can hurt your claim for just compensation.

1. Do not give a statement
to the other driver’s insurance company.

After the accident, the
insurance company for the driver that caused the accident will probably contact
you. When they call, they probably will sound friendly and helpful.

Be careful. Their purpose in
calling is to obtain a statement from you that they can use to show that the
accident was not the other driver’s fault. They may try to get you to tell your
story multiple times, with the hope that one version will differ from another.
If they find an inconsistency, they will use that in court to challenge your
truthfulness.

2. Do not minimize your
injury.

As a child, you might have
been taught not to complain or to admit to being hurt. As the victim of someone
else’s negligence, keeping your injury-related pain and other symptoms to
yourself can seriously damage your legal claim.

If you have been injured,
communicate that fact to the police at the scene and to every medical
professional you encounter after the accident. If you fail to acknowledge your
injuries and seek treatment for them, the insurance company will argue, “You did
not treat, so you were not hurt.”

3. Do not post your
accident on social media.

The information that you share
on social media will be carefully reviewed by investigators and lawyers for the
other driver’s insurance company. Your posted statements and photographs can be
misinterpreted, taken out of context, and used against you in attacking the
validity of your claim.

4. Be selective in hiring
a lawyer.

As soon as you conclude that
you have suffered damages that may require legal action, contact an experienced
injury attorney. Ask them about their experience with cases like yours, and ask
them to explain what you should and should not do to strengthen your case. This
is a difficult time for you, and you will need the right lawyer in your corner.

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